In the Drowning Deep
by Singer of Water
Summary: Life at Auradon has been a roller coaster since the VKs joined. Aria balances life with friends, school, and hobbies. But when her friend Ben is kidnapped she's going to have to deal with pirates and a bunch of new VKs. Harry/OC
1. Chapter 1: Handel, Verdi prati

Chapter One: Handel, Verid Prati

The sound of the camera's shutter going off filled the air for a brief moment as the red-headed girl brought the camera down from her face. She smiled up at the tree as the sun shone through the leaves, creating a glowing effect through the leaves. She took a deep breath in, closing her eyes as she felt a small breeze blow through her hair. For the middle of the week - and it being a long week full of projects and quizzes - it wasn't that bad.

The sounds of people shouting, and chattering followed by sounds of shutters going off drew the girl's attention to across the campus to the statue of Beast in front of the school.

"Spoke too soon," she said, biting her lip as she saw the crowd of paparazzi swarming a blonde girl in a white dress. "Poor Mal…" Glancing at the once misguided villain kid she felt a bit of sympathy for her. There was no way that Mal was used to life of someone as famous as she was. It was something that took a long long time to get used to. "I'm definitely not used to it…" the red-haired girl muttered to herself as she put the lens cap back on her camera.

"Aria!"

At the sound of her name, the teenaged girl turned around to see Ben jogging towards her. "Ben!" she greeted with a bright smile. "What's up?"

"Have you seen Mal?" the young king asked as he reached her. He breathed a little heavy from the light jog, placing his hands on his hips. "I was supposed to meet her here, but I can't find her."

"Uh…" Aria said, her eyes glancing to her left where the crowd of paparazzi was swarming said girl. "You might want to go save her."

"Oh man," Ben sighed. "I was hoping this wouldn't happen. We were going to meet for lunch, but I got caught up with some things."

The redhead gave a small smile as she looked at her flustered friend. "So you missed lunch then?"

"Yeah," her friend said, rubbing the back of his neck. "And I'm sure Mal already ate."

"And you haven't?"

"No…"

With a shake of her head, Aria reached into her bag and pulled out a red apple. "Here, you're going to need it."

Ben chuckled, taking the apple from her. "You always come prepared don't you?"

"Only when it comes to you," she replied with a small laugh. "Go get her."

The king smiled at his friend before taking up his jog once more and heading towards his girlfriend.

Aria laughed again, shaking her head as she slowly followed after her friend. From afar she could see Mal's look of discomfort as the paparazzi shoved microphone after microphone and question after question thrown at her. The poor girl looked ready to bolt. It wasn't until Ben showed up next to her that the girl looked a little less tense.

"She seems to be adjusting well."

"Oh my goodness!" Aria squealed, jumping slightly. Whirling she was met with orangey red hair that tickled his bright blue eyes. A large, toothy smile was on his freckled face that reached his ears as he stared down at the young girl, making her scowl up at him. "Wes!" she said, smacking his arm, earning a chuckle from him. "You have to stop scaring me like that."

"You make it too easy, Aria," he said, slinging an arm over her shoulders as the two began walking across the grassy area. "Anyway, as I was saying, Mal seems to be taking life at Auradon well." He gestured towards the young king and the blonde VK. "Well...as well as she can. The paparazzi is ruthless. At least they have Fairy Godmother to shoo them off." Just as he said that, said headmistress of the school began waving the photographers and reporters away.

"Yeah, but still," Aria said, fiddling with the strap to her camera, "this is too much for her. You can tell by how skittish she looks."

"...Mmmm...yeah…" Wes said, nodding his head side to side. "But at least Ben is with her."

"Aria! Wes!" came a soft voice.

The two redheads turned around to see Jane briskly walking up to them, a clipboard tucked against her chest. She smiled at the two, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear. "Hey guys!" She shifted on her feet, looking from one to the other. "Have you seen Ben?"

Wes nodded his head over his shoulder. "Saving Mal from the press."

"Oh dear…" Jane whispered, glancing over as she watched her mother direct a photographer who tried to sneak back over to the couple. She cringed when she saw her mother wag a finger at the man. Glancing back at the two in front of her, the smile was back on her face. This time a little more sheepish. "I'll just talk to him later. Oh, but Aria, I need your help with something for the Cotillion." She started walking when the red haired boy began heading towards the entrance of the school.

"Me?" Aria blinked, following the two. "Why me?"

"We need an opening number to get the party started and I was wondering if you and the acapella group would like to do the opening number," the fairy goddaughter said, looking hopefully up at the red haired girl. "You did an amazing job with Be Our Guest for Family Day so I thought you'd like to do Cotillion."

"Sure, Jane, I'd love to," Aria said, smiling at her friend. "Scarlet, Tony, and Nikolette are all for anything. I just have to check with Gavin and a few others. Gavin had a cold last week, if he's not better soon we can't rehearse with him which might makes us unable to perform."

"Oh absolutely," the short girl said, nodding her head to where her ponytail bobbed up and down. "Let me know how Gavin's feeling. I'd love to hear your ideas for songs." The smile on her face fell when she heard the chiming from her phone. Pulling it up to her face, she pouted slightly as her eyes scanned the screen. "Uh sorry guys, I have to meet with my mom and the rest of the Cotillion committee. We're trying to figure out plates and napkins. Exciting things…" she finished with a huff. "Bye guys!"

The two redheads waved as they watched the girl run off, quickly texting something on her phone as she went.

"That girl is always moving," Wes commented, eyebrows raising as he watched her maneuver around a group of kids without bothering to lift her head up from her phone.

"Yeah," Aria said, watching as Jane dodged a trombone player from the marching band. "I'm also amazed she hasn't gotten hurt while working on her pho-" Just as the red haired girl began walking again she tripped over her shoelace on the second step, flailing her arms as she began to fall.

Wes' arm shot out, catching his friend by the elbow. "Yeah, unlike you, fish legs," he said, laughing as he righted his friend.

"Please don't call me that," Aria huffed. "You know how I feel about being called that. Everyone calls me that."

"Not my fault you trip on air," he replied, patting her shoulder. "You can barely walk without falling down."

The young girl took in a deep breath and looked down at her feet with a groan. "I know. I hate it. I'm practically my mom when she got her legs."

"Yeah, you're a real fish out of water!" Wes looked at Aria with a huge grin on his face, a look of amusement clear as day on his face that rivaled the unamused expression on his friend's. "I hope you realize no matter how many times I say it, I will never stop saying it."

"You're such a pain," Aria responded, rolling her eyes.

"You know you love me," he said, ruffling her hair. "Alright, I have to go. Gotta catch up with the boys. I'll see you later. We're still on for tonight, right?"

"Duh! It's Wednesday," Aria said with a small smirk. "Late night snack run. I'll see you later," she said, giving him a wave before squealing out as she tripped once more. "I'm okay!" Jumping back to her feet she gave Wes a sheepish smile before turning into the school.

ooOOoo

"Oh good you're back."

Aria blinked at her roommate. As soon as the redhead walked through the door she was greeted with the tip of a sword inches from her nose. Staring cross eyed at it, she slowly stepped around the weapon, closing the door as she went.

"Um...Lonnie," Aria began, watching as the dark haired girl pulled the sword away and flourished it in another direction. "Not that I don't love having a sword nearly taking my eye out, but what are you doing."

"I'm practicing fencing," Lonnie answered with a bright smile as she swung the sword. "It's not my fault you're early; you're not usually back until later."

"I can see that…" the red-haired teenager said slowly, making her way to her bed as she watched her roommate continue to swing the sword, trying to ignore the comment about her timing. Pulling her bag off her shoulder and taking a seat on her bed, she addressed her friend again. "Can I ask why?"

"The fencing team is down a man and I want to join," Lonnie stated, sheathing the sword and grabbing a water bottle off her nightstand. She took a drink as she walked over to her friend. "My mom and dad have trained me with sword fighting for as long as I can remember. And stop avoiding the question. Why are you back early? Wes usually hangs out with the boys around now, which means you should usually be calling your mom."

Aria was silent.

"A, what's going on?"

"I may have gotten into a fight with my mom yesterday…" she said, tucking into herself as she leaned against the headboard of her bed.

Lonnie's face fell and immediately took a seat next to her friend. "Aria, I'm so sorry," she said, pulling the redhead into her embrace. "What happened?"

Aria sighed, resting her head on the Chinese girl's shoulder. "She keeps trying to get me to join the swim team."

"Oh…"

"Yeah."

"Well, have you told her that you're not interested?" Lonnie asked, scrunching her face slightly as she tried to figure out what to say next. "I mean, you've never been interested in swimming before, after all you don't exactly like swimming."

"I have!" Aria groaned, pulling away from her friend and flopping onto her side. "But she and my dad keep saying that I should try and connect with my roots and 'Don't you want to visit your grandpa?' 'Don't you want to see your aunts?' etc etc etc." she finished, her voice raising in a high pitched voice near the end, frantically flapping her arms about. "I do, but-"

"But you can't swim and you're afraid of the water," Lonnie finished, nodding her head sympathetically. "I completely understand, A. My parents constantly wanted me to learn how to dragon training and I was so scared to even go near one."

"You've told me this before, L," Aria said, rolling her eyes as she sat up. "And look at you now! You babysit Mushu's kids every time you go home."

Lonnie placed a hand on Aria's shoulder, giving it a squeeze. "What I'm saying," she said, giving her a pointed look, "is that I was scared, but I was able to overcome it and learn how to train dragons. You can do the same. You just need to take time and try. Take things slow. I'm not saying you need to go out and join the swim team like your mom wants you to, but try learning to swim. Baby steps." She stood up, patting her friend's hand before picking up the sword again. "You'll get it. I believe in you."

"Thanks…"

Aria sighed before leaning over the side of her bed and grabbing her laptop from the ground. Turning it on, she watched as the screen slowly loaded as she gathered up her camera and took the memory card out.

A gasp sounded behind her and she quickly whipped around to see a bright smile on Lonnie's face before she jumped onto the bed as well.

"Lonnie, please be careful," the redhead said, quickly grabbing her camera before it fell off the side.

"Oops," the dark-haired girl said, giving a sheepish grin. "Sorry!" She turned her attention back to the computer and watched as Aria plugged in the memory card. "Are those pictures for Evie?"

"Yep!" Aria said, a smile forming on her face. "I got some pictures I think she'll love."

Lonnie gasped and pointed to a picture of lily pads. "Did you go to the Enchanted Lake?"

"Yeah, I thought there'd be some good photos there." She clicked on another picture of lily pads with a white flower on some. "I thought these would be great inspiration for Nikolette's dress."

"They are!" Lonnie's grin grew. "Oh my god, these are great, Aria. Evie's going to love these." Giving her friend a side glance, a smirk grew on her face. "Did you get anything for me?"

Aria returned the glance and smirk. "I may have."

A squeal came from the roommate. "Can I see?"

"Sure," the redhead laughed, clicking on some images. "I found these flowers and thought they'd be perfect for embroidery on your Cotillion dress."

"We have to show Evie!" Lonnie said, grabbing the computer and pulling it onto her lap. She smiled brightly as she clicked through the photos. "These are incredible, A."

"Thanks. I need to print these off for her," Aria said, taking the computer back from Lonnie. "I'll post the pictures on the blog later."

"Good call." Lonnie said, grabbing her sword and putting it in her wardrobe. "I hope Evie's doing some dress fittings tomorrow. I really want to see how my dress is coming along. I gave her an idea for something a little different than just a dress."

"Really?" Aria turned to look at her friend, raising a brow as she paused in her project. "What did you change? Can you tell me?" Scooting to the edge of the bed, she smiled up at her friend with hopeful eyes.

Lonnie shook her head, a sly smile on her face. "Nope. You'll just have to wait until Cotillion."

Aria groaned, hanging her head back. "That's not fair. You know what I'm doing for my dress," she complained, pouting slightly. "Why can't you tell me?"

"Because I want to keep it a surprise," the Chinese girl said, jumping onto her bed and grabbing a textbook on her nightstand. "Have you studied for the exam in Science yet?"

"Not yet," she sighed, clicking on the touch pad. A second later, the printer began whirring to life and the sound of paper sifting through the machine filled the room. "This chapter is killing me and Science is already my worst subject."

"You know Mr. Robinson is happy to tutor people if you really need it. I know he's the IT guy but he's got that crazy smart family."

"Emphasis on the crazy."

"A!"

"C'mon, you've met Fritz."

Lonnie's silence was enough of an answer. "Okay, true. But you should still get some tutoring. You need to pass the class."

"I know, I know," Aria sighed, leaning back into her pillows. "Do you want to meet for a small study session tomorrow?"

"Yeah, I don't see why not. Does some time after lunch sound good?"

"I can do that, definitely. Thanks, L!" A bright smile grew on the redheads face as she finished up the last few photos to print. Middle of the week wasn't going too badly.

ooOOoo

Aria stared at Wes as she watched the redheaded male stuff two cookies into his mouth. Years of friendship and she was still amazed at how much her friend could eat.

"Do you ever slow down?" she asked, one of her brows raising as she brought her mug of hot chocolate to her lips. She sighed lightly as the beverage began warming her up in the chilly kitchen. "You need to chew instead of inhaling."

"Har har," Wes spoke through a mouth full of cookies. Some crumbs shot out landing on the kitchen counter causing Aria's lips to curl slightly. "Keep it up and I won't tell you about the Arendelle cousins' secret stash of chocolate."

"That's not a secret," Aria scoffed, rolling her eyes as she grabbed a cookie from the plate between the two. The cookie melted in her mouth as she took a bite. Thank the maker that they keep the kitchen open this late and that the students don't get in trouble for being in here at this time. She shook her head, taking another bite. "Rosalie already told a me and Nikolette where her cousins hide it so that threat won't do you much."

Wes glared at her before taking another cookie and shoving the whole thing in his mouth which earned another eye roll from his friend.

"I swear you're going to choke on that one day." Aria leaned forward on her stool until her elbows rested on the counter. She stared into her mug of hot chocolate, shaking her head at her friend's behavior.

"Yeah, yeah," Wes shooed through yet another mouth full of cookie. "So," he swallowed, "when's Ben getting here? He missed last week's meetup. He needs to make it up and get here now."

A sigh came from the red-haired female. "I'm not sure. He's been busy with all his duties that I hardly see him. And when I do see him it's for a brief moment before he's whisked away or runs off to another thing. It's almost ridiculous."

"Seriously," Wes scoffed, folding his arms as he leaned against the counter. "The guy is 16, going on 17. He shouldn't have to deal with all this stuff on his own."

"But plenty of our parents were our age when they took the throne. Look at my mom!" Aria exclaimed, gesturing wildly before throwing both arms wide. "She was 16! She was 16 when she left the ocean and when she married my dad." She sighed, resting her cheek against her hand. "Sometimes I feel like they expect too much from us. Sure they were our age when they did all this amazing stuff, but this is a completely different generation. They can't expect us to do all the things they. It's too much. Ben is a perfect example. He's wearing himself thin it seems."

"Well," Wes said, sighing as well. "You're not wrong, Ari. But this is also Ben we are talking about. Even when we were young he always liked to do things big. He always dreamed big and him being king fits him. But he does need to take a break every now and then. Especially with Mal being his girlfriend."

"Yeah… Poor Mal." Aria shook her head before running a hand through her red locks. "She's still getting used to life here and Ben's been such a big help for her, but with him being gone lately she's practically by herself."

"And he's also shirking us," Wes added, a big of a scowl forming on his face. "There's a way to balance work and spending time with friends and loved ones. Ben needs to realize that soon or I'm not waiting around for him like we are now."

"But we also can't abandon him, Wes," Aria stated firmly, giving her friend a pointed look. "What if something happens and he needs us? Would you abandon him?"

"...No…" the red-haired boy said after a moment. "You're right. But it's frustrating. I've been trying to get a guys' night with him and just hang out with him, but every time I ask something comes up."

"That's the same with me," the girl said, taking a sip from her drink. "I tried to get him to go with me to the Enchanted Lake the other day, but at the last minute he had to cancel. Something about a committee meeting." She sighed again, staring into her mug once more.

It was silent between the two for a few moments before Wes spoke up. "I'm worried about him, Ari."

Aria nodded slowly, meeting her friend's gaze. "Me too, Wes. Me too…"

 **So I finally saw Descendants 2 after my friend snapchatted me clips of it. Since then I have been listening to the soundtrack all month. While I was watching the movie I couldn't help, but create a character. I love The Little Mermaid and thought what if she had a (another) daughter. And so Aria was created and I started plotting so many ideas all at once.**

 **I want to thank loopally (tumblr) and proud-to-be-a-puff (tumblr)/em3kitty (wattpad and fanfiction) for letting me bounce ideas off of you. You seriously helped so much with future ideas and the personality for Wes and Aria. You guys are amazing!**

 **I really hope you liked the chapter. I hope to continue this story, I have too many ideas in mind that I hope to eventually write. However, with real life keeping me busy it will be a bit of a challenge to find time to write. Here's hoping.**

 **All the background characters I mentioned in this chapter I left who their parents are a "secret" for now because I plan on revealing who they are bit by bit. The side characters won't be playing a huge part, but I have ideas for the Descendants world for this story. Feel free to take a guess as to who is who and if you want to ask me leave your thoughts in a review :)**

 **I would love to hear your thoughts so please leave a review. Any and all feedback is really appreciated and helps me improve my writing.**

 **If you have any questions for me feel free to PM me or message me on tumblr at melapede. Possibility that I might make a blog for this story, let me know fi you'd like to see that.**

 **Hope you all have a happy Halloween!**


	2. Chapter 2: Va, dal Furor Portata

Chapter 2: Va, dal Furor Portata

As the voices faded away, Aria couldn't be happier. It was their first successful run through of When You Wish Upon A Star without Scarlet missing her solo. Not to mention Gavin was sounding better after his weeklong cold. In just an hour the group was able to get through the first half of the song they were singing for the Cotillion.

"Alright, guys, that was a great run through," Aria said, clapping her hands together as she smiled at the group. "I think we'll have this down in the next two days."

"I just wish Jane gave us a heads up instead of three days before Cotillion," a dark skinned girl commented, folding her arms over her chest. "As much as I love the group, I do have homework to do and my dress fitting with Evie."

A dark-haired girl raised her hand, nodding her head lightly before tucking a strand of her short hair behind her ear. "I have to agree with Nikolette," she answered softly. "We'll end up pulling longer practices which will cut into any time that I have to work on my project for History and I really need to spend time on it too. Also food. Will we get lunch or dinner breaks?"

"Yeah same here," a boy said, who looked like Nikolette. "I have to work on my project for

"Dude," a brown-haired boy said, turning to the dark-skinned boy, "that's not due until next month."

"I know, but it's like my mamma always said 'you have to work hard to get ahead in life'." There was a proud smile on his face which earned a heavy eye roll from the first girl.

"Try hard," Nikolette scoffed.

"Shut it, Niki," the boy said, glaring at her. "At least I listen to Mama. You haven't even started your book report in Literature yet."

"I'm almost done. I just have to finish reading," she said, waving her hand at her brother.

"Yeah with chapter one," the boy mumbled, turning back to face Aria.

"Tony! Nikolette! Focus," Aria said, sending pointed looks at the glaring twins. "I understand that. We'll just be having about 30 minutes to an hour added to the usual practice. That way you'll still be able to have time for homework," she said look at Tony. "And snack breaks." She looked to Scarlet. "And dress fittings." She turned to Nikolette. "Now if we could just run through the first half again we can start on the last half."

Just as Aria raised her hand to begin the tempo for the song and opened her mouth to find the pitch, the doors to the auditorium slammed open. All heads turned to the entrance, squinting to see past the stage lights that were shining on them to see Ben jogging up to the stage. The young king practically jumped onto the stage as he took two steps at a time. In seconds he was next to Aria, panting furiously as he grabbed her arm.

"Aria!" he gasped. "I need to talk to you."

"Uh okay," the redhead said, blinking up at her friend. The sudden appearance of the light-haired boy took the girl aback. Last she had heard, Ben and Mal were on a date. What was he doing here? "We can take a break. What's up?"

"Uh not here," Ben said, glancing over at the others, who all wore curious expressions on their faces. "I need to talk to you alone. Right now."

Aria's brow furrowed as she felt her friend grab her shoulders and start leading her off the stage. "Whoa, whoa, whoa! Ben!" She stomped her heels into the ground, doing her best to get her friend to stop pushing. "Stop, Ben!" Ripping herself out of his hold, the young girl turned to the acapella group. "We'll pick this up tomorrow." Doing her best to ignore the cheers and sighs of relief from the rest, she followed - dragged by - Ben into the hallway. "Ben! Enough!" Aria ripped her arm out of the boy's hold and glared up at him before taking a breath. "Ben, what's going on? You seem more stressed out more than usual. Weren't you supposed to be on a date with Mal?"

"That's what I want to talk to you about," Ben said, his voice lowering to nearly a whisper.

The redhead's brow furrowed as she looked up at her friend. There were few times when she saw her friend with such a stressed and downtrodden expression as he had now and those times were when he was stressed about his coronation and some of the recent duties he has as king. "...What happened?"

"Mal and I got into a fight and she ran off crying and I don't know what I can possibly say to apologize to her," Ben said in one go. If he wasn't out of breath from his run into the auditorium he certainly was now.

"Oh Ben…" Aria sighed and placed a hand on her friend's shoulder. "I'm sorry. What happened?"

"Well..." Ben hesitated as he thought over his words. "The date was going well and then I found Mal's spell book…" He sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose.

Aria's eyes widened. "Her spell book? But I thought she donated it to the museum?"

"That's what I thought!" He groaned again. "I saw it in her locker and I should have known. She's been using magic all this time even after she said she would stop using it! She's used it to change her hair, speed reading, and to cook the food for the date! She even tried to spell me to forget I found it." A groan of frustration came from the young king as he began to pace back and forth. Aria's eyes followed him as he went, biting her lip as she tried to process everything. Ben grabbed his hair in his fist before turning sharply back to his friend. "I got mad and went all Beast Mode on her. I yelled at her, Aria, and she ran off crying. I just...I just don't know what to do. I get it that it's not easy for her to adjust to life here, but it's not easy for me to adjust to being king. We were going to do it together."

"I get that you guys were supposed to figure it all out together, but you can't expect her to quit cold tuna," Aria said, raising a brow at him. "You shouldn't have yelled at her."

"I know that!" Ben snapped. He blinked and took a step back, looking down at his feet. "Sorry…" He sighed. "I tried to stop Mal from running off. I just don't understand why she was keeping secrets from me. I'm dealing with learning to be king, I get what she's going through."

"No, you don't, Ben." Aria stared at her friend with an incredulous look, slowly shaking her head. "Ben, you do not get what Mal is going through. You learning to be king and her learning to be an Auradon kid are two completely different things. You have spent your entire life, learning, growing, waiting for this moment. To be king. I am not saying that it's easy for you, but you have to think about where she's standing. She is a girl in a completely different world from what she grew up in. All she's ever known is evil and magic. You grew up with parents who cared about you and showed you love. Parents, who taught you how to be a prince and how to be a king. Your dad started taking you to counsel meetings when you were thirteen. Mal had a mother, who expect her to be an exact copy of her, who never once took time to learn what her daughter wanted or anything about her. She was used as a tool by her own mother. You grew up with everything you could have possibly wanted while she grew up with barely anything. So, no, Ben, you do not understand what she's going through." At the sight of Ben opening his mouth to say something, the redhead flung a hand up silencing him. Taking a shaky breath, Aria continued. "I get that you two were going to figure things out together. You learning to be king and Mal learning to be a lady of the court. But she did not grow up the way you did, and you shouldn't have expected her to learn everything in just _six months_. Mal didn't grow up learning to be a princess, she learned to be evil and then she learned what it was to be good. She's still adjusting, and you should have known that. No, she shouldn't have kept secrets from you, but clearly, she was afraid you'd react just as you are now. I don't even think you realize what you've been doing to her - and your friends - since you started going to council meetings and everything else that goes into becoming a king."

Ben searched his friend's face, his brow arching upwards as he saw the hurt look in her eyes, taking in every word she was saying. Since he had started learning to be king? He opened his mouth to say something only to close it and open it a couple more times. Finally, words slowly tumbled out of his mouth. "What do you mean?"

"What do I mean?" Aria practically shouted. "Ben! This is exactly what I'm talking about. You don't even know what's going on in your friends lives! You've been too busy with your kingly duties to even take time to be with us. You don't even know that Lonnie tried to take your place on the R.O.A.R. team only to be shot down by Chad _and_ Jay because of the stupid rule book saying only men could be on the team. Wes didn't even bother telling you he got the flute solo in band because the few times he tried you kept brushing him off because you had documents to look over, school work, or some council meeting. I haven't even told you about the argument I got into with my mom because you're never around. You even missed our weekly late-night snack meetup last night! You missed a couple actually, we've been doing that for years now. And don't get me started on what you've been doing to Mal! You are constantly abandoning her for your king stuff. She's willing to adjust to be a part of Auradon, to be a part of your life, but she needs someone to be by her side and help her along the way. That someone is you, but since you're hardly around she's relying on her spell book to help her get through and make _you_ happy!"

Ben's face was completely downfallen as he hung his head.

"Just stop for a minute. Take a step back and look at the bigger picture. This isn't all about you. Life happens."

And with that she stormed off, leaving the blond prince stunned and ashamed in her wake.

ooOOoo

"You said all that to him?" Wes said, food falling from his mouth as he stared at his fellow ginger.

"Ew, Wes! Close your mouth," Aria said, making a disgusted face at her friend before tossing him a napkin. "I can definitely see you get your manners from your dad. Lost boys never grow up."

"Damn right," Wes said, winking at her as he took the napkin and wiped his mouth. He swallowed the remaining bit of food in his mouth before continuing. "But seriously, you said that to Ben? What did he say?"

A heavy sigh and a glance down at her tray of food, Aria shook her head. "I didn't even wait for him to reply. I was so mad at him that I stormed off before he could say anything."

"Ouch," the male ginger said, wincing. "Think he's going to that to heart?"

"It's Ben we're talking about," Aria deadpanned, "he's kind and cares about his friends. He's going to take everything I said to heart and apologize repeatedly as he tries to make things better."

"Mmm," Wes said, taking a large bite of his sandwich, mustard smearing at the corner of his mouth. "That's very true."

"Seriously, Wes!" Aria scolded, rolling her eyes. "I know your mom has taught you manners."

"Oh she has," the boy nodded, wiping the mustard off his face, "but it's just you, Aria, I don't need to behave because I know you're stuck with me. You would have left a long time ago."

A groan came from the female as she leaned her cheek against her fist. "You're right…" She kept her gaze on a tree doing her best to ignore the wide grin on Wes' face that she saw in her peripheral. She sighed. "I don't want to stay mad at Ben, I want him to realize what he's been doing, and I hope he starts to change. I get he needs to learn to be king, but kings have friends and they take time to be with them."

"You're not wrong ther-"

"You!"

The two red-haired teens' heads snapped up when they heard a female voice shouting in their direction. With barely a glance in her direction they spotted Evie thanks to her signature blue. The VK was sporting a blue high-low dress with a red leather jacket. In her hand was her heart purse that she was holding in a death grip as she made her way across the grass to their table.

"Come here!" she said as a greeting once she reached Aria's side. She grinned brightly at her. "I've been looking for you all day. I need to do your dress fitting. Hi, Wes, sorry but I need to borrow Aria." She grabbed Aria's elbow and pulled her to her feet. "Come on!" she practically squealed.

"I'll see you later, Wes!" Aria exclaimed, tripping over the seat on the picnic table. Evie was quick to help her up, knowing well that it was a common act from the redhead. With a quick thank you, Aria turned to Wes as Evie began dragging her away again. "Eat whatever is left on my tray if you want to."

"Oh, I want to!" Wes laughed as he grabbed her remaining sandwich.

"You are going to love what I've done to your dress!" Evie squealed. "Oh and I have to thank you once again for those gorgeous photos you sent me. They helped so much with some of the dresses I've been working on! I have to show you some!"

"That's great, Evie," Aria said, smiling brightly at her friend's excitement. "I'm sure everyone will love their dresses."

"And then there's yours. I've been trying to figure out the perfect design for yours, but I think I've found the perfect one. You're going to love it!"

"Thanks, Ev," the ginger girl said, her smile growing as they reached the blue-haired girl's room.

After the stress of organizing the acapella group's song for Cotillion last minute, the fight with her mom, and now dealing with Ben, Aria was ready to just have a moment without all of that weighing on her shoulders. That was one of the things she liked about Evie: she didn't cause drama and she was always there to lend an ear if need be. After the incident at Family Day and the Coronation Evie and the rest of the VKs slowly became part of Auradon, making more and more friends by the day. It was a nice after everything. It was nice to see that even after how their parents treated them, the four VKs were actually good at heart.

"No need to thank me, Ari," Evie said, waving a dismissive hand. "You're the one who's been helping me with the designs thanks to your pictures. You and Wes. He's been such a great help with these Cotillion orders it's made everything easier. Who knew that he would know how to sew!"

"Well he got it from his mother after the number of times she had to sew his father's shadow back on," Aria said, laughing at the memory of the last time she saw that happen when she visited Wes at his home over the summer.

"I still don't understand how that works," Evie said, shaking her head. She paused a moment when they reached her room and she fished through her purse, producing her room key. "How can his shadow just separate from him?"

"I've been trying to figure it out since I've known Wes, and to this day I still don't know." Aria shook her head, looking up at the ceiling. "Wes never makes sense either when he explains. It's a lost cause."

Evie laughed, pushing the door open. "I'll grab your dress and once you change into it we can start see what needs to be altered," she explained as she made her way into the room. "I know I keep saying it, but you are going to love it! It's one of my favorite dresses I've made. The details were just so much fun to make."

Stopping at her desk to deposit her purse she stopped, her eyes landing on something atop. Aria stood off to the side, watching as Evie's smile fell into a look of horror and heartbreak.

"Evie?" Aria said, cautiously moving to the blue-haired girl. "Evie? Is everything alright?"

Slowly, Evie turned to the redhead, holding a piece of paper. "Mal's gone…"

 **I finally finished this chapter. I knew what I wanted to happen with it, but I kept losing focus and had no motivation to write. But I finally finished and I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. There are some things in here that I feel I could have written better, but no matter how many times I read through those scenes I couldn't figure out what I could have change it to. Either way, I hope you enjoy the chapter.**

 **I want to thank everyone who's favorite and followed the story. I'm so glad you're enjoying it! I also want to thank MaliceMalAmyMalevFaery, dontstopbelieving123, and GodzNo for your reviews. They have made me smile and I really appreciate you taking the time to write them. They mean a lot and give so much motivation for me to write. Thank you.**

 **Thank you to dontstopbelieving123/booksthegreatestweapon (tumblr), em3kitty/proud-to-be-a-puff (tumblr), and Looop/loopally (tumblr) for allowing me to bounce ideas off of you. Thank you for listening to me ramble every now and then when I was stuck on what to write. You guys have been such a big help with this!**

 **I haven't written this long of an author's note thanking people for their help, reviews, and such since probably high school so I'll just end it here. I created a tumblr for this story. You can find it at inthe-drowningdeep. You can also find me on my personal blog at melapede. If you have any questions feel free to message me here or on either of those tumblrs.**

 **I hope you enjoyed the chapter. I'd love to hear your thoughts so please leave a review. Any and all feedback helps me improve and figure out what I should do more of and such.**


	3. Chapter 3: Inutiles regrets

Chapter 3: Inutiles regrets

Aria watched as Evie paced the room, eyes traveling back and forth, following the blue-haired girl. Evie was muttering to herself as she clutched the letter to her chest. The redhead couldn't think of another time she saw the villain kid looking this distressed. Except for the time during Ben's coronation when she, Mal, and the boys almost took Fairy Godmother's wand. This time was worse.

The young ginger opened her mouth only to close it again. Seeing her friend in this state wasn't something she hadn't experienced with any of her friends (except Wes during finals, but that was nothing compared to this). She didn't know what to do. "E-Evie?"

"I-I-I don't know why she would do this," Evie stuttered, whipping around to stare at her friend with wide eyes. "I just don't understand why she would run awa-" The princess paused, mouth falling open and her face dawning a look of realization. "Mal was talking about the Isle yesterday. Asking me if I missed scaring people and all the things we used to do before we came here." Slowly, she sank down onto her bed, staring down at the letter in her lap. "But why would she ask me that? I thought she was happy here?"

With a sigh, Aria made her way to Evie, taking a seat next to her on the bed. "She was happy here," she said, placing a gentle hand on her friend's shoulder, "but Mal was stressed out from all the duties and responsibilities that were being shoved on her. She was scared and stressed out from becoming a lady of the court."

Evie's face portrayed hurt as she stared at Aria. "She did? But...but why wouldn't she tell me that? We're best friends. We tell each other everything." She paused, taking in a deep breath. "How do you know this, Aria?"

"Mal didn't tell me, I can promise you that," she answered, taking one of Evie's hands in hers and giving it a squeeze. "It was Ben who told me. He came to me earlier today telling me he and Mal had a fight." She pursed her lips when she heard the gasp come from her friend. They both knew how much Ben and Mal cared for each other, they never thought a fight would cause this much stress on their relationship and their friends. "He found Mal's spell book and found out she had been using magic to help her with her lady of the court training."

"The speed reading spell…" Evie whispered, more to herself than to Aria. "That explains her odd behavior yesterday. Mal was stressed and didn't know want to hurt anyone...but she just ended up hurting herself and everyone else…" The blue-haired girl remained silent as she processed everything, staring at the wall with a look of sorrow before it switched to a look of determination. "We have to tell Ben," she said, standing up abruptly, taking Aria off guard.

"Wait, Evie!" she said, jumping up off the bed as soon as Evie made her way to the door. "Wait!" One step towards her friend and her foot got caught on some fabric that was sticking out from under the bed causing Aria fell on her face with an audible "Oof". Scrambling to her feet, she ran after the blue-haired girl.

ooOOoo

Chasing after Evie down the halls of Auradon was not something Aria thought she'd ever do. Chasing Wes down the hall after he stole her dinglehopper, that was a different story. But here she was, following the blue-haired girl to Ben's office. It was lunch time which meant that the hallways were clear of students, making the journey to the young king easier for the two girls, no need to push through throngs of students crowding by lockers and making their way to classes. There was just a couple stragglers, but nothing that would cause a delay for them.

"Evie, wait for me!" Aria called after the young VK, nearly tripping and wishing she wasn't running in heels.

The sight of the large brown, ornate doors caused Evie to pick up her pace and caused Aria to groan as she tried to keep up with her friend. She watched as Evie stepped up to the door and slowly raised her hand. Pushing open the door, the two girls peaked their heads in and saw Ben sitting at his desk, sifting through some papers.

"Ben?" Evie called out gently as she took a step into the room.

Immediately the light-haired prince's face lit up. "Evie! Aria!" he said, standing up from his chair. "Come on in!"

The two girls quickly stepped in, shutting the door and turning to the prince with heart stricken expressions.

It was Evie who spoke, not even pausing to think of what to tell the king.

"Mal's gone back to the Isle."

Aria watched as her best friend's face slowly dissolved from the pleasant look to one of distress. It hurt her watching her best friend look like that. She knew Ben as someone who was always happy and she knew how much he cared for Mal. To hear that she had run off back to the isle was probably breaking him apart. Immediately, the redhead went to her friend's side with Evie barely a step behind her.

Once at his side, Evie handed the folded note to Ben, who quickly took it, unfolding it.

"Ben..." Aria said hesitantly as she raised a hand to him. She held out her hand and placed something in his outreached one. She glanced at her friend, watching as his face fell even more when he saw his ring that he gave to Mal. Aria took in a shaky breath as she watched the king scan over the note; she couldn't look him in the eye. Seeing Ben looking the way he did was hurting her. She hated seeing her friend like this.

"This is my fault," Ben said at last, taking a ragged breath as he shook the note in his hand. 'This is my fault. I-I blew it." He met Aria's eyes before looking down at his hands. "She'd been under so much pressure lately and instead of being understand I just went all Beast on her." Leaning his hands on his desk, Ben thought for a moment, his face growing hard. "I have to go there and apologize," he declared, looking over at the two girls. Aria's mouth fell. "I have to go there and beg her to come back."

"Ben, you'll never find her," Evie interrupted, shooting down his idea. "You need to know the Isle and how it works and…" Silence fell as Evie cut off. Aria watched as the blue-haired girl stared at Ben, a sad look on her face. "You have to take me with you," she said at last.

Barely a second after the words left her mouth, Ben whipped around at her, his eyes wide as he said "Yes." Aria's mouth fell open even more. "Are uh...are you sure?" he asked, taking a step towards the princess.

"Yeah," the VK whispered, barely nodding her head. She glanced to the side, heartbreak clear on her face. "She's my best friend." A sigh left her mouth as she turned around and began to pace. "And we'll bring the boys too, because there's safety in numbers and because none of us is really too popular there right now."

"Whoa whoa whoa!" Aria exclaimed, shaking her head as she stepped up to the two. "I understand that you two want to get Mal back, but Ben, you cannot go without me."

"Aria?" Ben blinked, staring at his friend as she stood in front of him with her hands on her hips.

"We're best friends," she said, a small smile playing on her lips as she gave her friend a sympathetic look. "We've been through everything together. This is no different."

Ben returned the same smile as he walked over to his friend and wrapped her in a hug. "Thank you, Aria."

"We're stuck together, Ben," Aria replied, returning the hug. "Besides," she said, pushing away from him slightly, a smirk on her face, "you know how much I've always wanted to travel. I've only ever been here and to China to visit Lonnie."

"This won't be a vacation, Aria," Evie scolded lightly. "This is the Isle of the Lost. It won't be anything you're used to." She turned to both of them, a serious expression on her face. "Now let's get two things straight here." With a deep breath, she continued. "You have to promise me that I won't get stuck there again."

At those words, Aria's heart fell. She could see a bit of fear in her friend's eyes. No, she hadn't been to the Isle (who from Auradon had?), and she couldn't imagine what Evie lived like there either.

"I promise," Ben answered, nodding his head once.

"I promise, too," Aria replied, taking one of Evie's hands in hers and giving it a squeeze.

"And there's no way either of you are going looking like that."

ooOOoo

"Jay. Carlos." Evie turned to the two male VKs once they entered hers and Mal's room. "Help Ben find something to wear." She pointed to a rack of clothes off to the corner of the room.

Aria watched as Jay slung an arm around Ben, a cocky grin on his face, as he and Carlos led the Auradon kid to the clothes. She didn't have time to watch them sift through the hanging fabrics before Evie grabbed her and pulled her to a new rack of clothes that she hadn't seen in the room before.

Slowly, the red-haired princess ran her hand over the different materials. Pushing one shirt to the side she found a dark pink leather skirt with studs where the pockets were. Next to that was a gray shirt with frayed hems. "How long have you had these?" Aria asked as she pulled out a dark green leather jacket with gold and silver studs on the shoulders. "I don't think I've ever seen these before."

"That's because they've been in hiding," Evie said, smiling softly as she admired her work. "This is my secret project. I've been designing some clothes that you'd find on the Isle for students here. I mean, VK chic is in after all." She gave her friend a wink before turning back to the clothes.

"So you've been designing clothes for students here if they ever wanted to dress like they were from the Isle?"

"Exactly," she said, pouting a little as she searched through the clothes. "Which means I have something for you. Aha!" She stood up straighter and pulled out a violet with silver studs on the shoulders, three silver zippers at the bottom on each side, and a silver zipper running up a little bit on each sleeve. "This one is yours." She sighed as she smiled at her friend. "I've always wanted to dress you in this style. I think you'd look great!" Her smile fell as she thrust the article of clothing into Aria's hands. "But we'll have to play dress up another time," she stated as she turned back to the rack.

Aria held up the jacket, her eyes widening slightly and her mouth falling open just a tad. Never had she seen a jacket like this made for her. Most of the time whenever she had something made for her by one of the seamstresses at her family's castle it was a new dress for some party or occasion, never was it something like this. It was always something frilly and pastel. She didn't mind what the seamstresses and tailors made, just as long as it wasn't covered in bows and ruffles. She had grown out of those years ago.

"Here you go!" Evie's voice broke Aria's thoughts as she was met face to face with dark turquoise fabric. "This jumpsuit will be adorable on you." She put the new article of clothing into the girl's hands and then turned her around, shoving her into the bathroom. "Now, go get changed and I'll look for a pair of shoes for you - and see if Ben needs any help…"

 **The redhead watched as her friend headed towards where the boys were in the room before entering the bathroom. Inside she stared at the clothes in her hands for a moment until she quickly changed. They were darker than any of the clothes she owned and they were definitely something she never thought of wearing before. It was a welcome change, but one that she wasn't sure about.**

She shook her head, trying to clear her mind. She didn't have time to think over how she looked in the clothes, they had to get to the Isle as soon as possible.

A squeal came from the blue-haired girl once Aria stepped out. "You look amazing!" She hurried over to her friend and handed her a pair of wine colored ankle booties. "These will go great with the outfit. Come on, Ben is done and we need to get going."

"Right," Aria said, nodding her head once as she followed Evie to the boys. Seeing Ben in his new look took Aria aback. Never would she have pictured King Ben in a blue leather jacket, raggedy looking jeans with different zippers and fabrics on the knees, and a ripped up dirty yellow shirt. It was a look she never thought she'd see him wear. And judging by the expression on his face, her outfit was something he never thought she'd wear.

"Whoa, Aria," Ben said as he, Jay, and Carlos approached the girls. "You look so different."

"You too. I never thought you'd wear anything like that," Aria said, watching as he pulled a blue beanie on his head.

"You guys can talk about your clothes later," Jay said, patting their backs. "We've got to get going."

The two Auradon kids shared a look at the three villain kids, who headed towards the door. With a deep breath, the two followed them out.

 **So sorry for the late update. I've been busy finishing up an internship and then graduation was last weekend. Now that I'm starting work and that's taking up my time. I'm not sure when I'll be updating, but I will do my best to keep the story going. I've also lost motivation and inspiration because of how busy I've become so I'm sorry in advance.**

 **I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I was planning on ending at some point where they're on the isle, but I felt this was a better cut off. I would love some feedback so please leave a review. You can also find me on tumblr at inte-drowningdeep. I'll be posting the chapters, keeping updates, and any edits I've made along with regular posts I find on the movies.**

 **Happy holidays and merry Christmas!**


	4. Chapter 4: Endo il Mondo

Chapter 4: Endo il Mondo

Stepping out of the limo, Aria's mouth fell open and her eyes widened. Looking around her she was in awe at the Isle. Looking at the buildings and everything that littered the area from rusty buckets and decaying barrels to dirty cloths and muddy puddles. It was a huge difference from the posh, clean, and prissy aesthetic that was Auradon. This was something new and different and a bit exciting.

"Yo, A," Jay called out, walking up to Aria and poking her in the head. "Quit daydreaming and let's get going."

"Hey," Ben called out as he stepped towards a tunnel. "What's in there?"

"Ben!" Jay said, stepping up next to Ben. "You don't want to know."

Aria raised a brow as she watched the expression on Jay's face. She understood wanting to keep Ben and her safe from any possible threat on the Isle, but the tunnel itself didn't look that harmful. What was on the other side? She shook her head as Evie placed a hand on her shoulder. She gave a small smile to the blue haired girl before following her to the boys.

"Guys," Carlos said, holding out his hands attempting to calm the tension. "Keep it chill. Last thing we need is our parents figuring out that we're here."

At the thought of potentially running into some of the worst villains in history, who even caused fear in their own kids, Aria's heart skipped a beat. She had only ever met - well seen - one villain and it was the worst of them all: Maleficent. When the witch had crashed Ben's coronation Aria had been shocked that any rational thinking went out the door. She couldn't even this day she gets goosebumps remembering the her face and the wicked laughter that filled the hall.

With a nudge from Jay that knocked her out of her thoughts she followed him and the rest down a street and away from the safety of the limo, and their one way off the Isle. As they entered a more crowded area, Aria got a better look at the condition of the island. Everywhere she looked people were wearing dark and mangy clothing that vastly contrasted from the bright and clean clothes that she was used to seeing. Every step she took she found herself staring at decaying streets and buildings. Cracks and chunks scattered the stone streets and buildings.

She had heard stories of what the Isle was like from Mal, Evie, Jay, and Carlos, but this was ten times worse than what she thought. It broke her heart. She never would have thought that these kids that she had grown to call friends would have lived this horribly. Or anyone for that matter. Looking over at Ben she could see it in his face too. She could already see the wheels spinning in his head as he thought of ways to make life on the Isle better for the residents.

Turning a corner the red head was taken aback when she saw two children no less than possibly seven years old run up to Evie and grab her wallet from her pocket.

"Hey!" the blue haired girl said, grabbing each in a hand. "Hey! Stop!" Slowly her face melted as she looked from one child to the next. Her tense posture softened and she let go of their arms. "Just take it," she said, nodding her head. With a final confirmation of "Go on," Evie watched the two children run off giggling.

Aria smiled as she watched the two boys scamper away. Glancing at Evie she felt proud that her friend would do something as nice as she did. It truly showed how much she had changed since arriving at Auradon.

Turning to look at Ben, Aria was greeted with his retreating form as the young king bega wandering around. With widened eyes and hurried steps, she followed him. The princess couldn't help but continue to be in awe as she stared at her surroundings. A small smile was on her face as the two turned a corner and ended up in a small opening.

"I really wish I had my camera with me," she said to herself. "This place is so interesting." She continued to glance around her before spotting two people staring at her and her friend. The red-head froze and watched as Ben approached one of them.

Ben smiled at the man, extending his hand in greeting only to have the gesture returned with a growl. Aria quickly grabbed hold of Ben's arm and pulled him away from the man, eyes wide as she did her best to hide.

"Okay, maybe not the best way to greet someone here," she mumbled.

"Ben, Aria, stop" Evie's voice came from behind them as she put a hand on each of their shoulders while Jay and Carlos kept the man at bay. "Just stop."

"Why?" Ben questioned, brow furrowing as he looked at the blue-haired girl.

"This isn't a parade, this is The Isle," she explained, giving both Auradon kids a pointed look.

Jay was the next to speak. "Keep your hands in your pockets unless it's stealing."

"But I don't want to steal anything," Aria said only to be drowned out by Carlos' tip of "slouching and strutting."

"And never ever smile," Evie added. She paused for a moment, letting the information sink in.

"Okay, than-" Ben began only to have the female VK raise a hand silencing him with a "No".

"No 'thank you's and drop the please too," she said, looking from the king to the princess. "Just...chill. Let me tell you something you can really trust." She placed a hand on the king and princess' shoulder making sure she had their attention. "Everyone has a wicked side. And we're going to help you figure yours out."

"You need to lean back," Carlos said, stepping up next to Ben as he demonstrated.

"And try dragging your feet," Jay added in, also demonstrating his advice. "You need to look like you don't care about anything."

"Like this?" Aria asked, slouching her shoulders. She began to walk, dragging her feet a little too much than necessary to the point it was obvious she was trying too hard. The red haired princess thought she had it only to immediately trip over her feet within seconds.

Evie rolled her eyes as she helped her friend up. "Not that much. Besides, the guys should be the ones to drag their feet. The ladies have to look like we own the place," she said, flipping her hair over her shoulder and strutting up and down the area. "You need to look like you own the place, but don't make eye contact with anyone. It makes you unapproachable."

"Got it," Aria responded, nodding her head vigorously.

"And the big thing about the Isle is that it's every man for himself," the blue haired princess said, looking Aria and then Ben dead in the eye.

Eventually the three VKs began teaching the two Auradon kids tips and tricks on how to blend in on the Isle. Jay showed first hand how easy it would be to get pick pocketed if they didn't stay observant of all their surroundings. Carlos gave tips on how to walk around and how to hold their posture. Then there was Evie telling them where to avoid, who to avoid, and every in and out of the Isle. After a few struggling moments with Ben looking too happy while testing out his new found knowledge and Aria tripping over her feet more often than was wanted, the two royals were ready to head out into the world that was the Isle.

It was going smoothly until Ben strutted down the alley and ran into someone.

"Hey, man." A boy with long blonde hair, an orange shirt with jeans, and a dirty bandana on his head stared at the king with somewhat of a smile.

Aria and the others quickly joined their friend's side, ready to get out of there without having to further interact with the boy.

"Hey, I know you."

The red haired princess' eyes widened and Ben turned his head as the others shook their head.

"Uh no," Ben said, acting as nonchalant and calm as possible. "Don't know you either, man."

The boy just continued to stare at him, his mouth hanging open slightly. "Uh yeah you do. Come on, man, really?" he asked, taking on a tone of disbelief. "Dude, I'll give you a hint. My dad is quick, slick, and his neck," he said, wiggling both his index fingers at his neck as he made a shrill sound, trying to get the blue clothed boy to realize, "is incredibly thick."

Half way through his hint, the boy had a large smile on his face which made Aria question how this young man was someone who lived on the isle. So far he was the only one to even smile at them. But as his hint slowly registered with her, her eyes widened. She turned to Jay, who had an unimpressed look on his face.

"Come on, man, I know you- huh?" The boy stopped himself as his eyes gazed up over Ben's head. His hand rose and pointed towards a poster that the group turned to see showing a picture of Ben and blonde Mal before pointing at Ben. Then back to the poster. Now it was his turn for his eyes to widen in realization. "Oooh you're King Ben!"

"Oh no no I don't think so," Ben stammered as Evie and the two other VKs grabbed him and Aria, pushing them away.

"Yeah, yeah you totally are King Ben," the boy said, watching the group leave." And you're J-Jay, Carlos, and Evie. Hey, guys. Although I'm not sure who you are. Your hair is familiar."

Aria caught the boy's fading comment as they all rushed out of that alley. Her heart was racing at the thought that someone on The Isle found out that they were there. It only pegged the question of what would happen now.

The three VKs lead the way through the marketplace after putting a good distance away from the blonde haired boy. They slowed down to a stop as Jay approached a barrel against a wall and grabbed a rock with a quick "Come on".

A hard throw of the rock against a yellow sign causing it to swing back and forth resulted in a metal gate lifting up and allowing an entrance to a set of stairs. Aria watched as the gate rose, knowing full well what this meant. This must have been where the four VKs used to live and it meant that they had already found Mal. She glanced at Ben as he stared at the staircase. She could only guess what was going through his mind.

Jay placed a hand on the king's shoulder and he and Evie led him to the stairs. The king glanced back at the group of friends before saying, "Wish me luck," and continued up the stairs.

"Good luck," Aria said, watching her best friend's back retreat up the metal stairs. She turned to the rest and sighed. "I hope he'll be able to convince her to come back…" The red head turned to Evie with a look of anxiousness. "Do you think he will?"

"I'm not sure," Evie responded with a sigh. "Mal's my best friend and she can be stubborn sometimes. This is a whole new situation. I'm not sure what to expect."

"We just have to be here for both of them," Jay said, leaning against a pillar. "No matter what."

It grew silent amongst the friends after that. None of them knew what to say and none knew what to expect when Ben and Mal came down, if Mal came down with Ben. Aria took a seat on a crate and began observing the area, taking in The Isle once more. It was another moment where she wished she had her camera, to capture the scenery and have something to remember her travel. Just as she always wanted to do. Although this wasn't a trip for fun and bringing her camera would have only brought unnecessary attention to them.

Moments later the sound of footsteps on the metal staircase brought the group's attention to behind them. Ben was coming down the stairs and Aria's heart sank to the bottom of her stomach when she saw the broken expression on her best friend's face. No words were needed, she knew exactly what happened.

"Where's Mal?" Evie asked as the gate closed.

"She's not coming back," Ben answered.

"What?" the blue haired girl said, her eyes widening slightly.

"Ben, I'm so sorry," Aria whispered only to be ignored as her friend brushed past her. She looked to Evie for help, giving her a pleading look.

"I'll talk to her." Evie headed over to some speaker on a pillar in front of them and began talking into it. "M?" No answer. "Mal, please, just let me talk to you for a second." Still no answer. "Mal, come on," the friend pleaded.

A loud "Go away" sounded through the speaker, making Aria cringe at the harshness in the purple haired girl's voice.

"Let's give her a couple hours to cool off," Jay suggested, placing a hand on Evie's arm.

It was then that Carlos spoke up, bringing the other three's attention to him. "Guys, where's Ben?"

The three walked up to him, looking down the alleyway that he was looking down. Their brows furrowed when they saw no blue clad king.

"Ben?" Evie softly called out.

Aria's heart began to race again when no answer came. "Ben!" she called out, louder. "Ben come on. Don't do this."

Just as she was about to call out again a figure came walking up towards them.

Evie sighed, placing her hands on her hips. "Ben, don't scare us like that."

"We thought something happened to you," Aria added, letting out a sigh of her own.

The sense of relief lasted only a second as the figure came into the light and an accented voice spoke up.

"Don't scare you?"

Aria's heart skipped a beat at the unfamiliar voice and her eyes widened as a young man with brown hair and a red leather coat approached them.

"But that's my speciality," he continued, a cheeky grin growing on his face.

The princess took a step back, bumping into Carlos as the new comer smiled at them all. Compared to the blonde boy from earlier, this boy gave off a wicked aura that made her skin crawl.

"Harry," Evie breathed, shaking her head as her brow furrowed.

"What did you do with Ben?" Jay demanded, glaring at the boy.

"Oh ehm.." he said, looking down the alley from where he came and pointing, "we nicked him, yeah," the boy answered, pursing his lips as if trying to look innocent as possible. "Mhm."

Aria's eyes landed on the hook that the boy carried in his left hand and for the second time her heart skipped a beat. That hook was unmistakable. She knew exactly who this boy was the son of and it only made her sick at the thought of what could have happened to Ben if this was who took him.

"And if you want to see him again," Harry said, looking up at the sky and raising a hand in thought, "have Mal come to the chip shop tonight." A smile was on his face again before taking on a more serious tone. "Alone," he pointed to each of them, emphasizing his demand. "Uma wants...a little visit."

It was silent from the group, Aria looked from one VK to the next, concern flooding her face while anger and annoyance was on the others. She watched as Evie and Jay glared at Harry, who began to pout.

"Aw, Jay," he said in a tone of mockery. "Seems like you've lost your touch." This only caused Jay to attempt to attack and Evie holding the thief back. Harry was grinning at this point as he leaned away from the long haired boy's jump. He slowly turned to Carlos, who stared at him with slightly wide eyes. The villain kid let out a bark, mocking the white haired boy before smiling at him as well. That's when his eyes landed on the girl next to the VK. "And who might you be, love?" he drawled.

Jay stepped up, placing himself between Aria and Harry. "Don't answer him," he mumbles to her.

"Keeping her all for yourself, eh?" he teased, side stepping Jay. Aria watched as the villain kid's eyes roamed up and down her body, a sly grin forming on his lips. "Red hair like yours," he began, raising his hook and running it against her hair, causing a shiver to run down the princess' spine, "anyone would be able to spot you from a mile away." His grin got bigger as he stared into her eyes.

"You must be a little mermaid," Harry sneered, "Uma will love meeting you." The mischievous glint in his eye showed the true meaning behind his words. He grinned before turning on the ball of his foot, whistling as he walked back the way he came.

The tense silence that followed the young pirate left the group of four stunned in his wake.

 **Sorry for the late update. Life has kept me busy. I've been working on starting a business and looking for a part time job while that is happening. Life after graduation is a busy life which means that I'm not sure when I'll update again. This is a hobby and writer's block has been hitting me hard with everything I write so updates will be scarce from here on out. Really sorry about that.**

 **I hope you enjoyed the chapter! Let me know what you think and leave a review!**


	5. Chapter 5: Ombra Mai Fu

**Chapter 5: Ombra Mai Fu**

"Give Uma Fairy Godmother's wand?" Aria exclaimed, shooting up out of her seat. Her eyes were wide and her mouth was hanging open as she stared at the purple haired teen.

Mal had just gotten back from the chip shop and without missing a beat had told her and the others the new plan. Uma's plan. Uma wanted the wand and mix her with that kind of magic, Aria could only imagine what the sea witch had in mind.

"There's no way we can give Uma the wand," Evie said, pacing back and forth before stopping to look at Mal. "We can't just let her destroy Auradon!"

"Uma doesn't get the wand, Ben is toast, guys," Carlos put in.

The red-haired princess' heart sank as she thought of that option. They couldn't let Ben get hurt either. They were in a stand still on what to do and this was making Aria a nervous wreck. She looked at the VKs as they argued amongst themselves, watching one speak over another, going in a complete circle on the outcomes.

"Wait, you guys," Mal interrupted, a look of hope shining in her eyes. "You're 3D printer," she said, gesturing her hands towards Jay and Carlos.

"Print out a fake wand!" Aria exclaimed, a smiling coming to her face. "Mal that's brilliant!"

"A phony wand," Carlos said, a smirk coming to his face as the plan slowly started to form. "I can print it in my sleep."

"Yes, but the second Uma tests it she'll know it's fake," the blue-haired princess stated.

"Okay, so we just get Ben out really fast. We need some kind of diversion," Mal suggested.

An idea popped into Aria's head and she quickly turned to face the ex-thief. "Jay! Weren't you and Wes playing around with Evie's chemicals the other day?"

"Smoke bombs!" Jay said, pointing at Aria in affirmation.

"That's perfect, you guys," Evie said, placing a hand on each of them. "I'll get the chemicals at Lady Tremaine's place. That could work. Oh and sick hair by the way." She walked over to Mal, running a hand through it. "Evil Stepmom really stepped up her work. "

"I was thinking the same thing!" Aria spoke up, walking up to the two VK girls. "That color definitely suits you better than the blonde. Cinderella's stepmother did this?"

"Okay, you wanna know something?" Mal said, a small smile coming to her features. "Dizzy did this. Stepmom's granddaughter," she said, adding at the end when she saw Aria's confused face.

"Little Dizzy?" A big smile appeared on Evie's face at the mention of the VK. "Shut up."

The AK princess began to smile brightly. Despite the tension that was felt in the air since the start of this trip (that was still there) she was glad to see that the two best friends were finding some happiness during it all. But that was quickly squashed as the two boys behind them interrupted.

"Oh yeah," Aria said, giving a sheepish look towards the two males.

"Carlos, Jay, and Aria," Mal began, clapping her hands together. "You guys meet us at Pirates Bay no later than noon. And you guys, losing not an option. …'Cause we're rotten."

"To the core," the other three VKs chimed in quietly.

Aria looked around at the four of them, her heart swelling at the pack they had. It reminded her of her, Wes, and Ben. They stuck by each other through thick and thin, no matter what was happening, just like the Core Four. That's why they needed to get Ben back. For her and Wes and for Mal. They could do this.

ooOOoo

Creeping around Auradon Prep at night wasn't a new thing for the two VK boys or even Aria. It was actually a pretty common thing for most of the students. Whether they were up late at the library studying, running back and forth to others' dorms, or even sneaking a late night snack - like in Aria, Wes, and Ben's case every Wednesday night - it was a pretty common activity at the school. But as Aria, Jay, and Carlos made their way to the boys' dorm it was a lot more stressful than any other night would feel. Aria caught herself constantly looking over her shoulders, hoping a student wandering the halls would catch them. They were turning the last corner before the boys' dorm when the soft sound of metal clinking could be heard.

Aria and the boys tensed at the sound, but quickly relaxed, letting out the breath the princess held, when Dude came scurrying up to them. His dog tags creating the sound as he approached Carlos.

The dog whimpered as the white haired boy picked him up. "Hi," Carlos greeted warmly, bouncing the dog in his arms. "I'm so sorry I'm late, Dude. Ben got captured." The VK was met with a lick on the cheek from the dog in response. Giving his pet a small smile Carlos took a step towards their dorm.

He barely took the step when Jay quickly grabbed him, pulling him back. "Why's our door open?"

The three stared at the door in confusion. Aria could feel her heartbeat getting ever so slightly faster at the prospect of one of the adults finding out that the had snuck out of the school. She was frozen only for a moment when the boys quickly rushed into their room, making her snap out of it and quickly follow after them.

 _How are they so calm?_ she wondered, stopping quickly when she nearly ran into their backs at the doorway. Peering between them she spotted a head of curly blond hair leaning over their 3D printer and rolled her eyes. There was Chad, peering into the printer as it made...whatever it was making for him.

"You've got to be kidding me," Carlos said, staring at the AK incredulously.

Chad quickly whipped around, giving a sheepish smile to the three. "I knocked," he said, letting out a small laugh.

Aria took a deep breath, shaking her head as she, Jay, and Carlos walked into the room. Carlos quickly held out his hand to Chad, making it clear that this wasn't the first time the prince had been caught using his their printer. Jay and Aria watched as Chad fished out a key from his pocket, slapping it into the VK's hand.

"Seriously?" Aria said, looking at the key, that she could only guess was a copy of the boys' dorm key, then up at Chad.

"What is that?" Jay asked, causing everyone to look at the thing that was printing in the printer.

The redhead squinted slightly through the dimly lit room and saw what looked like a doll, but without a head.

"Oh, that," Chad said, opening the printer and snatching the object from within, "is my Chad action figure." As he turned around he swung the doll through the air in front of the three students' faces, all the while making airplane noises. "Well minus the head."

Aria could only look on in with a confused and judgemental expression on her face. The only thing that came to mind as the prince showed off the "action figure" was "Why?".

"Sounds like an improvement," Carlos said, giving a quick nod. "'Scuse me."

As they pushed passed Chad, Jay gave Aria a small smile, making the princess let out a small snort of laughter. She quickly covered it up with a cough and joined her two friends at the printer.

"Why are you guys making Fairy Godmother's wand?" Chad asked from between Jay and Aria's shoulders.

Immediately the three jumped back, staring wide eyed at the blond prince.

"Wh-why are we making Fairy Godmother's wand?" Carlos asked, turning to Jay for an answer, worry flooding his face.

"'Cause um…" Jay said also at a loss for words, staring back at his friend.

"Ben's been captured," a new voice spoke up.

Aria's head quickly turned to one of the bed's in the room where Dude sat on a small dog bed. Her eyes widened. She had completely forgotten about the new discovery of Dude's ability to talk. It was a quick moment as she, Ben, Jay, Evie, and Carlos were rushing over to the Isle. Now here it was again, out in the open for Chad to now learn.

"What?" Chad exclaimed, staring at the dog bewildered. "Dude can talk?"

"I was stalling," Carlos declared, giving Dude a look.

"I thought you forgot," Dude responded.

The princess watched as Jay smacked Chad's shoulder, giving him a stern look. "Don't tell anyone. Ben's life depends on it."

"Really?" Chad replied slowly. "So if something were to happen, you know what I'm saying." He gave another small laugh, a smile flickering on his face.

"I hope you're not saying what I think you're saying," Aria said, eyeing the prince.

"Something bad, we get it," Carlos said, staring at the other male, his patience slowly wearing thin.

"God forbid," Chad continued, pulling his lips down in a frown in thought. "But if something _were_ to happen...who do you think would be in line to be king?" He gave a thoughtful look towards the three, holding up his headless action figure as if to prove a point to them.

"Is it me or is that in really poor taste?" Jay asked as Carlos scoffed.

Aria folded her arms, an angry pout forming on her face as she eyed the blond male. "No, Jay, I definitely don't think it's just you. It's really poor taste." The two shared a look before Jay shook his head and went towards the door.

Chad looked at all of them before flapping his arms to his side in defeat. "I'm taking this," he stated, holding up the action figure as he made his way towards the door.

"Not like anyone else will have a use for it," Aria scoffed as she watched him leave. She sighed a sigh of relief as Jay slammed the door on Chad's face just as the prince was about to speak up again. "Finally."

"Thank you, Jay," Carlos said as he turned back to the printer. "Alright, let's do this…"

Aria bit her lip as she watched the printer whirr to life and begin its process. Slowly the bottom of the wand started to form in the tube and she watched as she nibbled on her bottom lip. Her legs began to bounce and her fingers began to tap out a small rhythm as she watched.

Jay and Carlos looked at the princess before looking at each other.

"Uh, A?" Jay started, placing a hand on the princess' shoulder.

"You okay, there?" Carlos finished, giving their friend a worried look.

"I'm just…" Aria let out a groan before hanging her head as she leaned forward on the table. "What if this doesn't work out?" she blurted. "What if Uma can tell right away that it's a fake before we even hand it over to her? What's going to happen to Ben? To us?"

"Whoa whoa whoa, A," the thief said, grabbing the redhead by the shoulders and turning her towards him. "Everything is going to be fine. This is going to work. Uma will take the wand and we'll get Ben before she realizes anything. We'll get Ben back." He paused, giving her a meaningful look. "You just gotta trust us on this, okay?"

She nodded slowly. "Okay…"

"We've got this," Carlos said, placing a hand on Aria's arm, giving her a comforting smile. "Like Jay said, we'll get Ben back."

Aria smiled at the two VKs. "Thank you." She glanced at the printer as it continued to create the fake wand. Her smile fell as she stepped back up to it, a determined look adorning her face. It would work.

ooOOoo

Watching the 3D printer was the most boring thing Aria had probably done in her entire seventeen years of life. And she had sat through Professor Thatch's Linguistics lecture last year!

Minutes had passed as the printer created the fake wand inch by inch. The slow process wasn't helping Aria's nerves as she constantly checked the time on the alarm clock on Jay's nightstand. How much longer would it take to print the wand? They had to get back to the Isle to help Mal and Evie get Ben back.

"Have you ever heard the phrase 'Watching a pot boil won't make food'?" came Dude's voice from Carlos' bed.

"It's 'A watched pot never boils'," the redhead corrected, rolling her eyes at the dog.

"Who cares," the dog said, jumping off the bed and trotting to the girl. "I'm hungry. That's what I'm really getting at here."

"Not now, Dude," Aria said. She paused, her face scrunching up a little. "Oh my god I'm talking to a dog…" she mumbled under her breath.

"Don't you have talking fish back home?" the dog asked, sitting down and scratching behind his ear.

She nodded her head, looking down at the dog. "Touché," she replied. Bending down, she reached a hand out and scratched the dog's head, causing the pup's tail to thump heavily against the floor.

Beeping interrupted the dog's head scratch, drawing the princess' attention back to the printer. Slowly standing up, eyes wide, she stared at the glowing tube. "Jay! Carlos!" Aria hissed at the snoring boys. She quickly slapped each boy on the arm, jolting them awake. She turned and continued to stare at the wand in amazement as the boys slowly stood up next to her. It was an exact replica of Fairy Godmother's wand. She couldn't believe it. Whatever hacks and tricks the boys did to their 3D printer paid off. They had the wand they needed. They were going to get Ben back.

Carlos opened the tube, pulling the wand out as the three of them gazed at it. "Not bad," the white-haired boy said with a "yeah" in agreement from Jay.

"Carlos, this is incredible," Aria said, blinking a couple times still in shock with how real it looked.

"Let's go," Jay said, grabbing the wand and bolting for the door, Aria and Carlos close behind.

"Hey guys, what about me?" Dude called out, staring at the three.

"No, Dude," Carlos said, pointing a finger at his pet, "you stay. I'm serious, stay!" The dog just groaned in annoyance as he laid back down in his bed.

WIth a quick "I love you" from Carlos to Dude, the three Auradon Prep students raced out of the room. Fast and quiet footsteps, they made their way out of the school, making sure each turn was clear before they finally reached the front doors. Not without Aria nearly face planting at least once on the way out.

A sigh of relief came from the princess once they stepped outside into the fresh, night air. The brief moment of relief was taken away at the sound of Doug approaching them.

"Oh hey," he called out, standing in front of the three. "Have you seen Evie?"

Aria caught a glimpse of Jay hiding the fake wand behind his back as the three stared at the boy in front of them, doing their best to act casual. An easier feat said than done with what little time they had left to get back to the Isle.

"Uh…" Carlos stuttered, looking from Aria and then Jay, who ushered him to continue. "She went camping."

"Evie 'I want to live in a castle' sleeping on the ground with no place to plug in a hair dryer," Doug said slowly, not at all buying the excuse.

Aria pursed her lips as she looked Carlos again, hoping he'd have something to backup the camping excuse.

"You know how spontaneous she is, bro," he replied with a laugh at the end.

Joining in with Jay and Carlos' laughter, she smiled at Doug. "She had told me she wanted to get some fresh ideas for some dresses and the only way to do that was to try and see nature at night."

"Totally," Jay said, smiling at the boy as he slowly backed away.

"Later, Doug," Carlos said before the other boy turned to head into the school.

Just as the three thought they were in the clear, they turned around to head towards where they had left the limo. Only in a split second they were met with another obstacle.

"Lonnie!" Aria said, eyes wide. She quickly shook her surprise away and put on a bright smile. "What are you doing out here?"

Lonnie looked at them, a serious look on her face. "I'm coming with you guys."

Aria's mouth dropped as the boys let out nervous laughs.

"We don't need swords at the…" Jay began, falling short when he saw Lonnie's face. "Waffle Hut."

Aria's and Carlos' faces fell at that.

"Waffle Hut?" Aria hissed, giving Jay an "are you serious" look.

"You're going to the Isle to rescue Ben," the Chinese girl stated matter-of-factly. "Look it's either you take me or," she pursed her lips, letting out a breath, "I'm gonna have to tell Fairy Godmother."

The other three shared looks. The boys weren't believing the girl and Aria couldn't help but think that her roommate would in fact tell Fairy Godmother.

"Guys," the princess spoke up after a second. She sighed. "We need Lonnie. We need all the man power we can get. You both have seen her with a sword." Aria took a step back and stood next to her female friend. "I've seen her with a sword one too many times in our room. And her parents taught her since she was _ten_. She's our best bet to make sure we don't get out numbered."

The two male VKs thought for a moment, staring at the two girls before looking at each other. Barely a second later, they turned back to the girls, nodding slightly towards the new member of the rescue team.

Lonnie squealed and grabbed all three in her arms. "Really?" she asked, a bright smile on her face. "Thanks, you guys!"

Aria couldn't help the smile that came to her face. Knowing that they had someone else to help fight to get Ben back removed a little less tension. She just hoped it wouldn't have to come down to an actual fight.

 **Well it's been nearly a year since I last updated this story. Honestly didn't think I'd get back to it at all. I've been so busy the past year that I haven't had time to write anything let alone this story. But with the recent trailer for the third movie, I got a little bit of inspiration back. I'm not sure how far into this story I'll get. I know I've said this in previous chapters probably, but I just want to reiterate it. And if I do get to the main plot of the story that I have in mind, I want to let everyone know that every character I created in this story, current or future characters, were created before anything about the third movie was released. I have plans and if I finish this story and start anything after with the third movie I'll try and work it into the third one. If not this is just going to be a stand alone story. No idea. Again not even sure if I'll finish this story.**

 **I don't really have anything else to say. Hope you enjoyed the chapter. Let me know your thoughts and leave a review!**


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